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Sunday May 19, 2013 I have been having a debate with a friend about how our US Government is doing. I see today Barack Obama's approval rating is up to 53%. This friend I will call "D" rates him maybe as low as 10%. He claims on some issues Barack Obama is worse than George Bush. Let me set you straight: D is a liberal Democrat who maybe has never voted for a Republican. He feels our Government is invading our privacy in too many ways. I have told him I have nothing to hide and within 100 years we will not be able to hide almost anything. Just think about fingerprint identification. The next Smart Phones will have the capability to have you touch your finger on your phone before you may use it, thus prevent anyone else to use it. What about Google Glass, have most of you heard of that? There are at least too places that have banned these wearable devices which can take constant videos or pictures of anyone around them without their knowledge. Below is an interesting link that my good friend "D" sent me. http://www.aclu.org/blog/technology-and-liberty-national-security/plenty-hide Then here is this presented by "D", from http://falkvinge.net/2012/07/19/debunking-the-dangerous-nothing-to-hide-nothing-to-fear/: I really feel most of these are very hypothetical examples and I feel paranoia is rampant in people who are stating these examples of civil liberty and privacy issues. We still have our constitution. These examples above are false in many ways. I really don't believe, in except for very rare times, these things happen in The U.S.A. Call me naive, but I will stay here and not fear that my privacy will be invaded in the wrong way. I trust my government to get it right In The End even Though I think many people in control are incompetent, corrupt and out to get us. Let me state a little experience I had last night and this morning which is somewhat related to this subject: I was out in my vineyard yesterday at 6:00Am to put a fine mist of sulfur dust on the vines to prevent Powdery Mildew......SO I was bounced around a lot on the tractor and my back was hurting and I was very tired when Pat and I headed out last night to a close friend's 60th birthday party. I was very grouchy because the party was set to start at 7:00Pm way past my cocktail time of 5 to 5:30. I sure needed a tequila but decided to get there earlier and have a glass of Sauv Blanc because the restaurant was 35 miles away. We arrived at 6:20 and I had a few glasses of wine before dinner which was served at a very disappointing time of 10 minutes to 9:00Pm. I had another glass of wine at dinner but had nothing to drink after that. We were on the road home by 10:30. Pat and I had a discussion about the new Fiesta I purchased. I looked at the miles and was happy to see 5,600. I said to Pat, I had the car for a year now and that was low mileage. She said she thought I bought it in the Fall. I said I did not think so and said I thought I purchased it in April or May. I headed home cautiously. I knew if I was stopped and had a urine test I would not pass but after an hour and a half I might be able to pass a Breathalyzer. I set the speed control at 62 in a 65 mile zone so I had nothing to fear but something maybe to hide. I made it home with no trouble BUT in the middle of the night I woke up and thought about when I purchased the Fiesta. If it was in April, my license would have expired and I could have been stopped by a cop for a small reason but could have developed into a big problem. I got up this morning and saw my license on the back of the car expires in September. For a change I was so happy Pat was right. The bottom line is I should not have been driving after drinking, especially 35 miles from my home. My friend was worth the risk, because I have never been stopped by the government while driving under the influence. I rarely do it anymore. Monday May 20, 2013 I know I will die or just disappear from this earth. Before i go I want people to remember me. Now that could be how I did not capitalize the "i" in the last sentence. As I write this diary, I know I make mistakes but I am a horrible typest so I want to just drive a long, that could be making typografical mistakes, so be it........ Remembering me could be something I said to offend them which is more what I say, but not do. some who have heard me know i can be gruff. Some of you have heard me on this diary know I can be gentle and caring. As i said before a few people came by for my 70th birthday and I was honored. Two who were not there passed away within the last two weeks. CK as we called him was the most important person in my life in the 80's besides Pat and of course my two daughters in 1985 and 1987 after he appeared in my life. He was right up there....... when he hired Pat at a raise in salary to steal her away from another attorney. I was so happy because I was barely getting by running the vineyard. Pat was paying for almost everything and our grape sales to Gallo were fair I thought but only paid for our debt service. CK was gruff like me and helped me strive to be what I have now. CK passed away and I am saddened but I will never forget him and that is what I think life is about. There is no God who looks after us but we are God and influence others who follow us. Thank you CK. Gallo got caught up in the White Zin craze and the price of Zinfandel went up from $400 a ton to $1000 by 1990. CK lost Pat so she could take care of Kate and Susie and i had a little money from grape sales to start a winery in 2004. Just last night I learned about Harry passing away. Harry and Loretta provided most of our solar here at the winery. I donated some wine to a Barack Obama gathering near here in Windsor WAY back in 2008. I heard from Loretta the next week that she loved my wine, even though I was not there. Loretta and Harry joined my new wine club started around that time so they are one our first customers. Harry was so much fun and could be so friendly. He came in my office one day when the only time I could look at a Raider game was on my computer by sound. It was live so I could not record it. Harry wanted to know how I was doing.....harry wanted to know how the Solar was doing.....Harry wanted to just sit and talk to me.......I wanted to tell him to go away and probably implied it BUT Harry stuck around for awhile and I have never forgot it That Harry was a trusting, nice guy and I will miss him. I wish I had met him 30 years ago...................I am crying now......... We need to make an impression while we are here......... 9:00 Pm: We are so happy that we are easily getting ready for our bottling at the beginning of July. The 2012 wines are fabulous and I can't wait to try some in the bottle. It has been a hard day. I got little sleep last night, I have heard to day and before today that some people I hear from are not as concerned about someones death. We die and the survivors go on, I know that but i do not believe there is life after death. I understand some people think there is a life after death, and i have respect for it. I stopped believing in GOD and then after that when I realized there was no Heaven either. I was 10 when my father died of an accident and my mother then married another man. He was a tough Navy survivor from the 2nd World War and told us every night. We did not get along for most of my time with Larry. That is when I knew there was no Heaven.....would my Mother be united with both my Father and Larry. At 12 years old I asked that question and no one gave me an answer. Like I have said I believe as most of you we remember people who have died by the way they made an impression on us whether good or bad.......I remember Larry, good and bad........impression is good, it keeps me alive........ Tuesday May 21, 2013 The first day after Taurus My two daughters, Kate and Susie will join Pat and I in New Orleans, I hate planes so I have been on two only in the last 15 years. I went up to Seattle a few years ago and it took us two hours to obtain a simple car request we had booked a head of time. Then three years ago Pat convinced me to take a trip to Hawaii, one of my favorite places from the past. When I came back on the plane it was raining so the Captain was making a joke, obviously not making me happy......"It is raining right now in San Francisco so if we have to make an emergency landing don't try to take off your baggage in your compartment". I was not happy I had no baggage, carry on. I hate plane flights so I am not looking forward to the flight to New Orleans but i do know I will enjoy the food,,,,,,,,,,if i survive the flight...... Saturday May 25, 2013 Pat is away attending Giants baseball. It has been interesting to see how many customers have an opinion of our 2010 wines. I have tasted many other wines from other winemakers who have produced wines from this most challenging vintage. I still think the 2010 vintage will be unique and some of the wines I have created will be the best I have done. The character of all the Zinfandel based wines from 2010 were very different than any of my 34 years growing gapes and making wine from each vintage..........all have been unique but the 2010 vintage was extremely complicated. All the 2010 zinfandel bunches turned to raisins and thus created a strange flavor that is extremely intense. Either you like it or not. At first I did not like any of the zinfandel wines produced by my winery or any of the wines produced by other wineries. Some of the wines have come around and I am enjoying them with highly seasoned food. These wines will stand up to anything. Many of our customers feel like I do about 2010 Zinfandel based wines and they do not like the wines. I have had several customers say the wines are spoiled. They are not spoiled. They just need a lot more time to show their best. They are extremely high in acid so I have several customers who love them. Since we are sold out of many of them, it has been fun to take from the customers who do not like the wines and give to the customers who enjoy them. Like I have said, I can't please everyone. In the 2012 vintage, I may have no trouble pleasing all. Time will tell. |
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For any comments or questions I encourage any of you to
e-mail.....david@coffaro.com Dave |
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